Comparative Study on the Rehabilitation and Demolition Systems of the Blighted Private Housing - Experiences of Japan and France

This paper aims to investigate different rehabilitation and demolition systems of the blighted private housing. We choose Japanese and French systems to analyse contrasted notions of “blighted private housing” and its... [ view full abstract ]

This paper aims to investigate different rehabilitation and demolition systems of the blighted private housing. We choose Japanese and French systems to analyse contrasted notions of “blighted private housing” and its rehabilitation and demolition systems. 

In France, from 2000 anti-insanitary housing measures become active again.  The policy focus on blighted condominium which appears from mid-1990s.  In Japan, an act on the promotion of condominium reconstruction is enacted in 2002 and another act on the abandoned houses in 2015.  The target of the law of 2002 is the condominium which have economic potential to be reconstructed by unit owners and that of the law of 2015 is the empty house which may threaten its neighbourhood.

The goal of the French system is primarily the resuscitation of the unit owner’s association and it is the association who stops blight of building and rehabilitates it.  If these steps are not expected, the French system advances to dissolute the building unit ownership to destruct the building or to make it a single-ownership property.  The Japanese system aims to choose to reconstruct old but potentially valuable condominium after pulling down it or to destruct dangerous houses. We will examine common and different points of these two systems on their backgrounds, legal rules and application.